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Troma Team Maverick studio, wireless player put film in fans' hands By Karen Brown When you're working with the really small screen, it pays to think big. That's the thinking behind indie film studio Troma Entertainment's decision to forge a deal with Kanakaris Wireless to deliver its classic cult flick "Toxic Avenger" wirelessly to fans via PocketPC PDAs. With the planned late February debut, the two companies say it is the first time a full-length feature film has been delivered to wireless handheld devices. Troma president Lloyd Kaufman doesn't mince words about his motivations in forging the partnership--he sees the Internet as a way to get around the "giant, devil-worshipping conglomerates" that control the entertainment industry. "We've admired Kanakaris' crusade to bring art to the people," Kaufman says. "One of the biggest problems we face is getting art to the people. They've killed Napster, or they are close to it. So how do we do it? Kanakaris has a way." Kanakaris is behind the CinemaPop.com Web site, which offers a collection of movie titles for free or pay-per-view to members. The site offers the content using Windows Media Player 7 for home computers and wireless devices, the latter through its WEARable Content section. Landing Troma's cult thriller is an important peg in developing the CinemaPop.com site, according to CEO Alex Kanakaris. "In terms of full motion feature films and short features, that definitely appeals to the Internet audience out there," he says. Streaming to wireless devices is far from a slam-dunk, with lower bandwidth and higher packet loss to deal with. So Kanakaris has developed CinemaWEAR, an encoding scheme compatible with WindowsMedia for PocketPC encoded at 10 kilobits per second, 19 kbps and 128 kbps wireless connections. Troma, which specializes in Z-grade films with such titles as "Bride of Killer Nerd," "Class of Nuke 'Em High," "Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell" and "Chopper Chicks in Zombie Town," also is doing some Internet experimentation of its own. This summer, the studio was the first to premiere a film exclusively on the Internet with the release of the slasher film, "Unspeakable." Kaufman says unlike major movie studios, he has no qualms about giving fans--and potentially Web pirates--access to the film. "We looked at it as sort of a sneak preview," Kaufman says. "If people did bootleg it, we look at it as advertising." But when it comes to streaming to wireless devices, the networks in the United States still are a limiting factor. CinemaPop.com has established a following in Europe, where digital wireless networks are farther along. "It is frustrating," chief technology officer Robert Wood says of the U.S. wireless network capacity. "But because we have markets in Europe, we can go on innovating and apply it to the U.S. markets when we can." Although high-speed wireless systems are 12 to 16 months from reality in the United States, there is a need now to start offering content, Kanakaris adds. "We didn't want to wait like other Web sites for people to be connected to broadband," he says. Kanakaris also plans to expand its business to content hosting and delivery and is close to announcing alliances with content delivery providers, Wood says. The company is also working on a 24-hour "infotainment" channel to add to its Website featuring commercials and interactive e-commerce. For Troma, opening yet another distribution channel is part of its maverick mission to put its 1,000-title movie catalog into as many hands as possible--especially those holding PocketPCs. "We look down the line as the independent movie studio with a direct line to the fans through the Internet," Kaufman says. "I think it is part of a revolution. We are feeling our way along and we hope to get the art to the people."
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